Thursday, November 3, 2011

Abey’s Abode…Tampa, Florida:

Note 10:
We arrived at the warm, sunny state of Tampa in the west coast of Florida on the 16th of October. The day was sunny enough but seeing the rail clouds hovering at a distance, I knew we were in for rainy days. Day 2 & 3 turned out to be wet-with incessant rains, yet with the sun popping out every once in a while to assert its position! We were quite happy to stay indoors-at Abey’s Abode-gorging on the wonderful food she had made for us. The delicious Cuppa (tapioca) & Meen (fish) curry & Malabar Chicken biryani took us all the way back home- to God’s own country.
Amidst her hectic work schedules, Abey took us to the Madeira Beach, described on net, as lying ‘on the gulf of Mexico, an island 2 miles long and a smile wide’! Such a perfect description!
So though we never went for any Bay Dinner Cruises or visited any Contemorary Art , History or Science Museums that Tampa is famous for, we were comfortable & felt well cared for ; and carried with us the memory of our visit to the comprehensive Salvador Dali Museum during out previous two visits!
Thank you Abey, Thomas & Christian for being as warm & welcoming as ever! We left for Pittsburgh feeling well rested & rejuvenated!
-24th Oct.’11

And the gusty winds whistled on… Michigan Ann Arbor-with Sid!

Note 9:
Wow! Listening to the whistling winds I sit beside the closed window at the hotel room, while Sid & his father sleep away a cold and rainy Saturday morning! Strong but pleasant sounds of whistling winds along with the rustling of leaves fill my senses Yes, the feeling is good!
We arrived in Michigan Ann Arbor on Wednesday, 12th Oct. The day was beautiful & sunny. The next two days were partly cloudy, partly sunny; the Fall leaves still clung on to the trees in brilliantly blazing shades of coppers, burnt siennas, reds & yellows. On Saturday however, dark clouds filled the skies and rain fell softly-lazily all day long. And the gusty winds whistled on; cold winds which blew gently at times, & fiercely at others. And the leaves began to fall. I actually captured this on lens-a tree with its naked crown-bereft of all its grandeur on the top and brilliant below! I wished then that Autumn would stay on just a little longer!
Read a very apt verse last night-it’s a must share, so here goes:
"October gave a party; The leaves by hundreds came-The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples, And leaves of every name, The Sunshine spread a carpet, And everything was grand, Miss Weather led the dancing, Professor Wind, the band.”-George Cooper.

Michigan Ann Arbor is a larger University Township than Pittsburgh, with wider roads, and many parts of it reminded me of Delhi, where I spent my childhood and school years. Sid and his roommate have a lovely little home in Northwood. Done up just sufficiently, so that they do not get totally distracted from the very purpose of their stay in Ann Arbor! They cooked their meals together, and shared the chores. I left for Florida with a feeling of peace - and prayed to God to look after my sons, to bless them and guide them through all their future endeavors.
Finally, here's a meaningful quote to mull over:

‘…the winds will blow their own freshness into you, the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves…’ - John Muir, the Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States.)

So, until the next time friends, it’s Adios & Vaya con Dios, from me!
-18th Oct.'11

Cathedral of Learning,Nationality Rooms ,Dining out, Luncheons...

Pittsburgh Notes: (8)
Cathedral of Learning, Nationality Rooms , Dining out, Luncheons & beautiful Autumn Leaves…
Last Thursday, we were up early as Malini Rao had offered to take us to the Cathedral of Learning, a dramatic Gothic Revival Tower with its Internationally renowned Nationality Class Rooms ; It was really wonderful to know that this was a major exercise to integrate the Nations of the world, a long, long time ago. It was built between 1926 & 1937, during the peak of the Depression, with contribution from the children of Pittsburgh & people, the world over. A historic landmark,it is the second-tallest education building in the world—42 stories and 535 feet tall. It is also the geographic and traditional heart of the campus. We went into to some of the 27 Nationality Classrooms but missed the Indian & Russian rooms where classes were being conducted. However we saw all the rooms very clearly in the beautiful Audio visual presentation,close to the exit.The vast garden surroundings of the Cathedral of Learning was very beautiful too.
With our new found friends, Veerendra Rao & Malini, we went for a delectable, absolutely scrumptious meal at Saturday night to Nakama Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar-a hip, trendy, upscale dining place at South Side.Their knife wielding chefs are reputed to make the best tasting hibachi grilled chicken & seafood this side of Pennsylvania-& whats most surprising, within minutes! A treat from Prahlad, hence we relished it all the more!
For Sunday lunch we met up with Murli & Rameshwari at the recently re-vamped Taj Mahal restaurant-a very nice experience indeed.
Enjoy the pictures, & à bientôt mes amis!
12th Oct.'11

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Psychedelic Rock or whatchumaycallit Musical Highs, High school girls hockey, Boys football & FALL, yesss… again! & this time at Carnegie Melon:

Pittsburgh Notes: (7):
Pittburgh, Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh. Just when I think that I've seen all that's good in you-that's when I realise 'hey, but there's still more of you to experience!' Will I ever tire of you?! Perhaps never!
And was'nt I worrying just the other day that my son was not doing anything non-nerdy anymore?Well guess what? We went out for dinner to the home of very lovely people, The Rao's,who we had to meet as they were friends of very dear friends of ours from Chennai. At their home we chanced to meet some really interesting families & best of all, Prahlad actually got to playing their electric guitar after ever do long! (he never ever finds time to play his own!) He was his psychedelic best, though I understood little; only recognised Led Zeppelin & later Clapton's 'Stairway to Heaven'!! Was mighty pleased that everyone enjoyed his music. Rohit, Malini's younger son joined him and they sounded good together!
The next morning we went driving around the Schenley Park, a daily destination for university students; we drove past the Phipps Conservatory and walked down the pathways breathing in fresh air. The leaves on the trees here, were slowly turning into shades of breathtaking rust, orange and red. A truly exhilarating experience.
The following evening, on our coffee round, we went to the Carnegie Mellon Campus to see fall in full bloom , an experience which never ceases to amaze me! Some undergraduate students were playing Americal Football. It was an interesting game. A little like Rugby, yet perhaps even more aggressive! Okay, I admit this would not come anywhere near the actual experience of witnessing a real game at the Football stadium, but it was an experience nevertheless! Driving back a few days earlier we chanced to see some school girls playing a game of hockey in their school grounds, & we stopped by to get a feel of the fun & fervor. I do hope you enjoy the pictures I took with my not very specialised sony digital camera!

So long till next time...keep chill until then. Love & good cheer from Pittsburgh comin' your way! 10th Oct.'11

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Eat Outs, place visits,photo shows,ice cream parlors amidst son’s hectic schedules! –ssigh!!

Pittaburgh Notes:(6)
Hi again. Now this seems quite a while since my last note. Life has been happening all the same-no day has gone by unnoticed & without making its presence felt! :)
Father arrived Sunday & now Prahlad is hosting the 2 of us & it sure seems right & good!! Especially the feeling that our son goes to work & we stay at home...wow, that’s when I realise just how fast the years have flown by! Prahlad is busier that ever! When he is not working on his PhD research, he is working as a teaching assistant for Grad. students at CMU & juggling in between, his role as Founder/CEO of Quant MD (Quantitative Medical Diagnostics) & managing the company's affairs, guiding the Interns who work for him, & mentoring students of the CMU Class of CS in their SW engineering studio project....& the list goes on & on! When at home he is working all the time-I actually need permission to have a discussion with him-comprising often, never more than a few words! His father is luckier-so often I resort to the via medium! Then Friday & Saturday nights, he meets up with friends which is more than fine with me-cos he so desperately needs to relax. I therefore have been filling my days, in order that I am secure with being alone, doing my own thing! Now that Narayan is here, things are surely different & I have company!
Sunday nights have been devoted to Lee, Dough & Dara-we have dined the Cheesecake factory, two Thai restaurants, Coriander India grill, Taj Mahal, Tamarind, Mint , Mercurio’s Gelato on Walnut Street & so on! Its been fun. Lunches with friends like Durga, Lee & Jayne…have added to the fun ‘n flavour!
On Saturday, 24th Sept, lunched with friends at the Point Brugge Café Inc., a European Restaurant at Hastings Street, Point Breeze. It was especially nice as there were varieties of Salad & Seafood! I enjoyed every bit of the meal & the company of Malini, Heidi, Doris, her son and fiance-we had a blast! We then went to a unique coffee shop nearby, named, hold your breath-'Make your Mark Art Space & Coffeehouse’ where we saw a Photography Show by a photographer named John Ubinger, who had just travelled to India, from the Himalayas, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim to Calcutta, Delhi, Agra, Benare, & Rajasthan, for months on end. Enjoyed his frames of pictures from dewdrops on leaves magnified, to the sun rise behind the Himalayas & enchanting sunsets , while sipping my favorite Cappuccino, preferred 'not too dry'! A very interesting day-after which I rushed home, dressed appropriately and headed for the Community Centre close to home,to reach in time for the Sai Bhajans, & all ready to sing one too! So you can see, Pittsburgh is getting the best out of me!

Do check out John’s website-ubinger.com; his photography is truly worth a view.
& Guys, don’t forget to check out my pictures of the fall foliages-still my favorite part of my visit this time!
Thursday, 29th Sept.’11

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Of Temples, Trees, Flowers & things...

Pittsburgh Notes: (5)
Visited the Sri Venkateswara temple Sunday, with Prahlad & his colleague. Its hard to describe what I felt as I entered the temple to the chants of familiar shlokhas sung in unison-it would probably suffice to say that it transported me to an entirely different level of consciousness. As I waited for the “Deeparadhna”, standing in prayer before Padmavati Devi’s vigraham & later, while having a beautiful darshan of Lord Venkateswara I felt a strange feeling of peace, a sense of finding your own, I hate to say this, in another man's land. It really transported me back home to the temples I have visited through the years, at Tirupathi, Madhura Meenakshi, Rameshwaram & Guruvayur…. in my country. With tears in my eyes, I prayed fervently that my children be looked after in this foreign land, a prayer that has been on my on my lips for some time now.

We then went to the Udupi restaurant nearby for lunch, following which we returned home. On the way back , I thought thoughts. Unrelated to this beautific experience. But thoughts nevertheless.
Why is it so very difficult for people to tell you they care for you, when you as well as they know that they really care? Confused you,have I? Read it again! Well, I have never really ever understood that. Cos I believe if they tell you, then they will never have regrets later in their life, should they never get another chance. Its funny, but I don’t remember regretting not having cared for anyone let alone not letting them know that I cared. I have always done that. Even if I was certain that they did’nt reciprocate my feelings-& that’s putting it gently. Just read in the ‘Tequila & Salt ‘ email Alka just sent me ‘The only reason anyone would ever hate you, is because they want to be just like you!’-now that explains it all ! & like I told you, these are just thoughts. Forget I ever mentioned it. :)

Let me now get onto happy topics. Autumn fast approaches with it beautiful colors of fall foliages- the trees are gradually changing colour into lovely rusts, orange and even red leaves-oooh its beautiful, and its happening! Heard Fall when it happens in toto is actually even more beautiful in Ohio. Am posting some pictures of ‘Temples, Trees, Flowers & things’… Happy viewing! 20th Sept ’11

Old Friends, New Beginnings...

Pittsburgh Notes: (4)
Hello there! Life hurries by, seasons change and Pittsburgh is still the place for me! Its growing on me-and I am beginning to feel comfortable here. One thing for sure I have this feeling i have been sent here by the higher power up there, in order that I de-stress-so I have to make sure that happens; and what better place to de-stress, I tell myself. I have to admit thought, that I miss waking up to birds chirping at Moksham; I miss seeing colourful birds near the waterfall, I miss sipping my cup of coffee hearing the lazy sound of water unhurriedly trickling down the rocks & stones which make up the waterfall. These wonders in my life, gotta admit, have had a therapeutic effect on me, while at Moksham.
A few weekends ago, I met up with an old schoolmate, C.V.Rameshwari, who was a dear friend during my 7th, 8th & perhaps 9th standards at DPS, Mathura Rd, Delhi, & who is now a Child Psychiatrist here. She invited Prahlad & me over and we met up with her family. It was indeed a very nice experience. She mentioned that I was just the free spirit I was so long ago-and hey presto, that became the title of my next literary 'masterpiece'; yes it got me thinking, analysing-was I really the same? 'Free Spirit' defined -one who is not restrained, as by convention or obligation; a nonconformist ...yea, I guess that's me! :) Except, I realised my obligation to my family goes beyond my free spirit! & so I wrote…
Shortly after landing here, I was wondering how I would go to the Departmental stores to pick up what i need to run a home-and just out of the blue, a wonderful & gracious lady, Lee who I met at the Sai Bhajans, offered to take me shopping. Now, we meet ever so often and Hey Presto! I got around to doing all that I had to for Prahlad & his home.My life has become a lot easier therefore; I realised, surely these are just some of the small miracles in my life!
Friends like the Vijay Sai's, Lee, Durga & Vasu has been God-sent to guide & help Prahlad in the initial 2 years he was here. We will be eternally grateful to them.
I shall end this note with pictures taken with the Vijay Sai’s, CV, Lee & family .Happy viewing! Keep smiling & Hasta mañana!-Sunday, 18th Sept ‘11

“A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.”
-William Shakespeare